[CJ Culture Foundation=2016/5/2] "Pinky and Granzo (written by Shin Chae-kyung and directed by Mun Sam-hwa), a play supported by Creative Minds of CJ Culture Foundation (Chairman Lee Jae-hyun), is scheduled to come to the stage of CJ Azit Daehakro from May 3and continue up to May 15. This is to be the first performance of 2015's two winning plays of Creative Minds, which is CJ Culture Foundation's program to support new performance creators. The second will be "Crescendo Palace".

"Pinky and Granzo" contains a heartbreaking growth story where three characters try to overcome the trauma of alienation and abuse through fantasy. They rise about their painful past as they balance between reality and fantasy. Within the play, playwright Shin Chae-kyung freely modified the motifs from an American artist named Henry Darger and his novel "In the Realms of the Unreal".

The play is directed by Mun Sam-hwa who has been responsible for many works including the play titled "Kiss Of the Spider Woman", features Kim Jae-geon, Lee Hyeon-ju and Kim Yeong-taek.

Art Director Bae Sam-sik of Creative Minds revealed a strong affection for "Pinky and Granzo" saying, "The play starts with the life of a person who embraces his bleeding wounds and desperately stands up to them. It is something miraculous to win a fight you can't win, but more miraculous is the mind itself to never stop the fight even when the odds are against you."

At the same time, CJ Azit Daehakro, the performance venue of "Pinky and Granzo," has also gained as great attention as the play for its unusual meaning. The theater was opened by CJ Culture Foundation to mark its 10th founding anniversary on April 22, 2016.CJ Azit Daehakro, being deemed a "culture container full of creativity and sharing," was designed to help turn the free imagination of young creators into reality, serving as a space for workshops, showcase and performance. For example, it provides a flexible space where some of about 200 seats can be separated to expand the stage, for creators to freely manage the stage depending on the feature of the work. CJ Azit Daehakro, as an experiment station for the performance and creativity of young artists and as a space to interact with the public through culture, is expected to hold various programs in order to share the seats. The first step is to invite teachers at the study room of the child welfare center to the stage of "Pinky and Granzo."In addition, CJ Azit Daehakro will contribute to the establishment of a healthy ecosystem for the performance industry by providing a space for creation organizations and small theater groups.

CJ Culture Foundation has contributed to an expanded culture industry by way of various support programs to find new artists and develop content. "Creative Minds," one of the support programs operated by CJ Culture Foundation from 2010, has picked out a total of 83 new creators in the categories of musical and play, and has supported 45 stage performances including musical reading and theatrical performances. Major musicals and plays from Creative Minds include "Moby Dick," "Goddess is Watching," "Poongwoljoo," "Fungus," "The Song of Arang," "Desirable Youngster," and "Boy B's Home," all of which have received love and encouragement from a lot of audience members.

A heartbreaking story of growth where children try to overcome their own personal trauma and rise above their painful past as they balance between fantasy and reality

On a rainy morning, Henry, a cleaning man at a hospital, quarrels with his daughter Pinky while getting ready to go to work. When he declares "Let's fight the final war with John in our story tonight," Pinky blazes up with anger. The two have fought wars with children in the kingdom of "Abbieand," in the story, for more than a decade, but have failed to capture John, the leader of "Granddelinia" and the fundamental cause of the war. It's been eight years since Granzo who had written the story together with them suddenly disappeared. Pinky turns 24, and Henry has become an old man. In their minds however, they are still children.

When she was young, Pinky was seriously abused along with Granzo by John, the director of an orphanage, but was later miraculously saved by Henry. Since then, she remained inside the home, in other words the world of the story for 14 years. In the story, Pinky is the princess of the kingdom "Abbieand," and the warrior who viciously kills "Granddelinia." In reality, she is just an adult child only waiting for her old father to arrive. As for Henry, he is the "guardian of the children" in the story, but in reality, is the 65 year-old old man who brings an abandoned toy gun from a garbage incinerator, hoping for his daughter to finish the story. In their minds, there are entangled emotions of worrying about facing "John," the symbol of abuse from her childhood, resenting each other, and feeling guilty.

However, things change when Granzo who they think is dead knocks at the door after Henry goes to work. The 23-year-old young man, covered with wounds, is gripped by fear and confusion. He tries to talk about his past and the life of the "outside." His unexpected return starts to gradually shake their shabby yet solid world.

Character

Henry (65 year old) - Kim Jae-geon

A hospital cleaner and author of "Pinky and Granzo"

Fourteen years ago, he secretly brought Pinky and Granzo, abused by the director of an orphanage, into his home. He appointed the two children as the heroes of the story he created, and built a world where children develop their strength and have revenge on their abusers. However, his world is shaken when Granzo who Henry thinks of as his son goes missing, and Pinky grows up.

Pinky (24 year old) - Lee Hyeon-ju

Sister of Granzo and princess of "Abbieand,"

the kingdom of children in the story
She stayed at the orphanage, where she and her brother were seriously abused, until she was 10 years of age.
Since she began living in Henry's house, Pinky has never gone outside, instead, she has been constantly fighting wars in the world of the story.

Granzo (23 year old) - Kim Yeong-taek

Brother of Pinky.

He came to know Pinky at the orphanage, and received the same abuse as her. Since he came to the house of Henry with Pinky at nine, Granzo had lived as the prince of "Abbieand" for six years, fighting wars in the world of the story. However, as he leaves the house and starts to live a life on the "outside," the truth of the story he wanted to believe is shaken. After many long years as a vagabond, he eventually returns home.